The Las Vegas Raiders have been active throughout free agency and finally focused on improving areas that have hindered the organization for a while. However, a national writer thinks there’s a creeping weakness that can set them back instead of helping them and Derek Carr get over the hill.
Freeman May Be Onto Something
Mike Freeman of Bleacher Report recently shared his opinion about the transactions NFL teams have made in free agency. He didn’t mince words about the Raiders:
Derek Carr is still there, but the Raiders signed a junior Derek Carr in Marcus Mariota anyway. What that means is that the franchise will likely have the same problem they did last year: subpar quarterback play. Stock: Way down.
While it’s true the Raiders quarterback position has been shrouded by a lack of continuity and inefficiency for a while, I wouldn’t just sell stock just yet. It’s true that Carr has the tools to play better – he could start by not throwing the ball away on fourth down – but he isn’t solely responsible for the team’s failure to have just one winning season in the last 15 years. He should definitely definitely make the team around him better, but the truth is that it wasn’t until last year the team showed resemblance of a vision and direction.
Related:Â Marcus Mariota Predicted to Lead Raiders Back to Playoffs?
Derek Carr and the future…
It wasn’t until last season that Raiders brass started hoarding talent. With building blocks in Josh Jacobs, Darren Waller and a solid offensive line, Las Vegas can now surround Carr with the final pieces of a winning squad. It’s been said he didn’t have weapons, that won’t be the case anymore and if he comes up short, the team would have enough weapons at their disposal to aid whoever takes his place.
The Raiders would need Mitch Trubisky level play at quarterback to regress and if they get a true number one wide receiver in the draft and Tyrell Williams stays healthy, Las Vegas may be able to field a competent team on a constant basis. They were able to finish the season 7-9 with Carr at the helm. With more talent all around, the Raiders can get a better record in spite of him.
At this point of his career, Carr isn’t playing elite football. Nonetheless, the Raiders are building a good enough team that can contend if he steps up his game and competent enough to thrive if he fails. Either way, the Raiders won’t be worse than their 2019 counterpart.
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